Reviews 58 government corpations (GC) presently in operation; their reported adherence to 15 federal statutes which cover a diverse range of legislative requirements; and proposals to create additional GCs. Corps. include: gov't. department agencies, gov't. corps. (owned and controlled by the public sector) and gov't. sponsored enterprise and private corp., (owned and controlled by the private sector.). Examples: Export-Import Bank, Fed. Housing Admin., Amtrak, OPIC, RTC, TVA, FDIC, Legal Serv. Corp., Corp. for Public Broad., Postal Service. 85 charts and tables.

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed 22 government corporations, focusing on their reported adherence to federal statutes. GAO found that: (1) identifying government corporations is difficult, since no comprehensive definition of or criteria for creating them exist; (2) there are 22 self-reported government corporations in operation and 5 other entities that are generally considered to be government corporations that receive some operating funds from annual federal appropriations; (3) Congress exempts government corporations from some key management laws to allow them flexibility in their personnel practices; and (4) government corporations vary in their reported compliance with certain federal statutes, mainly because of these exemptions.

GGD-96-14 Government Corporations: Profiles of Existing Government Corporations

GAO compiled an updated study profiling 45 government corporations authorized or created by Congress. GAO provided background information on: (1) the history of federal legislation controlling government corporations; (2) the working definition of a government corporation; and (3) past government corporation studies. Each corporation profile provides data on 60 corporation attributes, including: (1) corporate organization and purpose; (2) budget, Treasury, and reporting status; (3) financial audit requirements; (4) legal and litigative status; and (5) financial structure. The study also includes: (1) descriptions of 25 laws followed by government corporations; (2) corporation responses to the applicability of those laws; and (3) a listing of government corporations participating in this study and past studies.

Government corporations are generally federally chartered entities created to serve a public function of a predominantly business nature. These entities range from Amtrak to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to the Export-Import Bank. This report discusses (1) government corporations now in operation and (2) their adherence to 15 federal statutes.